They say that drowning people don’t shout for help or wave, and may not even splash that much. Maybe most people who drown are just below the surface when they die. You can get caught up in something and dragged into the deep, and perish there, arms reaching up vainly; but you can also slip just low enough that your Read More

The word ‘church’ conveys the idea of an organization managed by a defined hierarchy. It is a clergy and laity system, typically reflected in the architecture of pulpit and pew (though the exact furniture may vary). It has definite boundaries: at any given point it is incorporated within a specific building, is led by a specific set of individuals, and Read More

I am feeling my lack of involvement in good work. In my current mood, “good work” means something useful which endures, preferably for generations. I don’t think anything I’ve been involved in will last 100 years. One hundred years isn’t forever. Nothing lasts forever, I acknowledge that. But when you see a house or a barn or a stone wall Read More

A sign in the area advertising a local hospital reads: “With a stroke, time matters. We give you more of it.” The intended meaning is immediately clear: the hospital will prolong your time alive. But the carefully analyzed and deconstructed meaning comes out quite differently. Time matters in the case of a stroke because delay leads to greater and more Read More